Hotaru
Hotaru, also known as Keikoku, is a member of the Mibu Clan and is Shinrei's half brother. In the past, he was one of the Shishieten, alongside Demon Eyes Kyo, Akira, Akari, and Bontenmaru Personality Hotaru is the comic relief of the group. He acts extremely stupid and dense and always states the obvious. Some examples of this are Hotaru's fight with Kyo (he makes a long speech then forgets what it was supposed to be about), when he leads Kyo's group through the Mibu palace (When asked directions, he says they should go straight when the path ahead of them is a straight one), his battle with Yuan (When Yuan said he can beat Hotaru with only his foot, Hotaru said he will beat Yuan with only his finger), and various others. Story Hotaru (whose original name was Keikoku) was a member of the five stars of the Mibu and was sent to spy on Kyo. He has great admiration for the blood-thirsty and icy Kyo and resents Kyo's softer side that has developed by coming into contact with Yuya. He also resents his older half-brother Shinrei (another member of the five stars) because Shinrei is the valued "wanted son" while he, Hotaru, is the illegitimate son of a concubine. Despite Shinrei's ignorance of the truth, Hotaru's entire life seems centred around his animosity towards his brother. All he does is counter Shinrei. Where Shinrei uses water (their father being a Master of the Muryou Saikyou Ryuu School, the water school of the Mibu), Hotaru devotes himself to fire. Where Shinrei swore to uphold the honor and wishes of the Mibu Clan, Hotaru rebelled. Where Shinrei sought strength through friendship and camaraderie, Hotaru sought strength through solitude. This prompts him to battle his former allies, the Shiseiten and Kyo, because he believes that they stand between himself and the solitude needed for true strength. Hotaru is defeated by Kyo and becomes his "servant" as his life was spared by him. He stays behind in order to recover from his injuries but reaches Kyo and his friends when Kyo is about to be defeated by Shinrei. Hotaru battles his half-brother and, much to his surprise, discovers that Shinrei already knew they were related. Moreover, Shinrei was the one who convinced their father to stop sending assassins after Hotaru and even managed to get Hotaru accepted as one of the five stars of the Mibu, mainly because Shinrei wanted to face Hotaru as an equal since Hotaru was his only brother. Hotaru is defeated by his brother, who merely puts him unconscious while pretending to have killed him. When Shinrei is about to be killed by Kyo, Hotaru protects him and pleads to Kyo to spare him. Hotaru later rejoins the Shiseiten to battle his teacher, Yuan, and the rest of his former clan. Hotaru's right eye becomes red whenever his subconscious is awakened. Hotaru, after realizing that he was not alone in the world, became deeply concerned with protecting and saving the ones he cares about although he doesn't show it directly. He calls Kyo "a friend of combat" and tries his hardest to protect him. He also becomes friends with Benitora, Sasuke, Yuya, and Yukimura. He is considered a family member by Yuan's family. Also, his relationship with Shinrei becomes much more close. Although they both claim to still hate each other, their fights and teasing are much more similar to sibling rivalry. Throughout the manga, Hotaru keeps saying that he hates water and continuously teases his older brother; however, he has shown that he deeply cares about him and will save and help him whenever he can Powers Hotaru, in his spite for Shinrei, chose to control Fire. Hotaru's command of fire allows him to summon black flame, which is hotter than any normal flame, and to generate a solid shield of flame to protect himself. He reveals many techniques He fights with a double-sided sword: one side shaped like a katana, the other shaped similar to a long dagger. It is believed this sword is just one long blade with wraps and a hand guard so he can hold it. '- ' A Form Without Form: Hontaru's true talent. He is able to absorb and master fighting styles he faces in battle and assimilate them to evolve his own style. ( for example ) The Dancing Blade: Shinrei's fighting style which Hontaru mastered after battling him. It centers around reading the opponents rhythm and vocalizing the timing; matching his movements to his opponents, while using dancing attacks that changed direction, which makes them difficult to predict and guard against. '- ' Red Eyes '( After Anthony has awakened his latent abilities ) Hotaru's right eye becomes red and increases his combat stats several fold. '- ' '''Fire Bunshin: ' Using high speed, the u ser quickly creates a fire clone that looks just like them and has the clone take their place. Consequently, the enemy's attack will strike the fire clone and not the person themselves, confounding the foe momentarily, making them vulnerable to a counter attack. Can also be used to successfully retreat from a battle. ' ' '- ' '''Flame Wall: Hotaru summons powerful flames to block enemy attacks. He forms it as a wall in front of him or surro unds his body with flames like an armor. '- ' Chikewai: A technique which increases his power and speed by putting himself in a state where he pushes himself beyond the limit, risking immense exhaustion. *'Hono Chikewai': In order to considerably enhance his capacity, Hotaru sets the blood in his veins on fire. This is considered a forbidden art which burns up his life, and he can only maintain it for a short while, and it leaves him drained afterwards. '- ' Shakuran Entei: A blast of flames is fired at the foe. ''- Maouen'' ' A larger and more powerful version of Skakuran Entei. '- ''' '''Kaho Enbu: Traps the victim inside a barrier where the oxygen is quickly sucked out, putting out the flames within. However, the spark from the flames still remains. If the victim breaks the barrier, oxygen quickly rushes in to ignite the spark into a fiery explosion, a backdraft. Thus, the victim must choose between suffocation or taking the point blank explosion. - Demon's Breath Shoots many small blasts of black flames at the enemy. Black flames are superior to normal flames. '- ' Hell Crusher: A large sphere of black flames is emitted outward from the user's body. This is an omnidirectional attack. Keikoku Inferno: The foe is engulfed in a huge and powerful maelstrom of fire which pastes blood marking onto their skin. As a result, this ignites intense fire inside their body, burning them from the inside out. Category:Characters